The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1887-03-09
FACTS ABOUT TIE CAR.
INCIDENTS IN HIS STORMY LIFE not
GENERALLY KNOWN.


HOW Ills Liking Tor France DispIcnscd Hi
Father--IIc Favors the Strongest Kind o
Govcrnmcnt--Iiis wife the Idol of Iii.
Home--A Devoted Husband.
From the New York Mail ana Exprcss)
While the private and public life OF
every other European monarch has fire.
quently given the Journalists pen occa-
SION to cover rcam OF paper, more or
less, Alexander AlcXandrowitch OF Rus
sia, has kept the modern hicrophants, to
whom every secret is known and who
are Initiated into the mystery OF life,
pretty vol at bay. What has crept into
print about him, of and on, has
uniformly been marrcd by inaccuracies.
This is easily explained. The present
Gar is not readily approached, and since
his advent to the throne especially has
he hedged about SO thoroughly that
even the intrepid gathcrcr of news has
often lost scent before reaching him.
Alexander III. saw the frosty sun of
the Neva first March 10 Qfcbruary 70 by
the Russian calendar), 1915, rs the sec
ond son of Alexander H., and was cdu.
Gated with his elder brother, the heir
presumptivc, Nicolas, by two years his
senior. The education of these two
princes was put into the hands of Count
5. StrOgOnow, but their real ''gollver-
neur' was Privy- Councillor Titow, re-
called for the purpose from his post as
Russian ambassador ut the court of
Stuttgart. In Titow's place State
Gouncllor Won Grimm was appointed in
1858, when Alexander was II years of
age. From that time on the boy drank
daily deep from the fount OF German
learning, rs nearly all his tutors were
professors of that nationality. Grimm,
however, i'll spite of his German name,
early influence Of Tituw, Il Nluscovitc of
the old school to the finger tips, had
sunk into the youthful princes soul.
Grimm, twenty years before, had guided
the education of the Prince Constantine
Nicolaicwitch. The military training
was intrustcd to an adjutnnt general re-
siding III the winter palace, the religious
instruction to learned old pope, and
State Secretary Baron Modest korir,
author of several books on Russian his
tory, taught the high born twain all Of
russian statccratt, history and law they
were dcSirous to learn.
April y, 1865, the death OF the
cHarowitH intewcncd ut Nice, and Alex
andcr, then Just attaining his majority,
was solcmnly declared the heir to the
throne. In the following year, Novcm-
Der 8, 1866, he welded with much pomp
the Danish lady who had been his late
brothers tianccc, Princess Dagmar,
King Christian \. s daughter. Baptized
IN the Greek orthodox faith, she received
the names Mario Fcodorowna in cX-
change for her former omcs-NIaric
Sophie Fredcrika Dagmar. This prin-
cess, as amiablc and accomplished as she
is beautiful, was born November 2Gth.
1917, and was consequently her spousc's
Junior by two years and eight months.
The young consOrt OF the Russian heir
came from court whore the loss OF two
beautiful provinces, just swallowed up
by Prussia, was mourncd with tears OF
impotcnt wrath, and where pious VIII
liam by the Spree had been daily
mathematical. What wonder, then,
that the beautiful bride made her young
husband, then in the flush of enthusiasm
SO common to heir prcsumptives,
sharcr in her mortal antipathy to the
Hohenzollern dynasty?
The palpablc effect of these uXorious
lessons was not long i'll coming. The
prince within few months Wa; the ac-
knowlcdgcd head Of the mti-Gelmau
party at the court, ut that time and up to
the hour OF Alexander H. 5 death divided
into the .d Russian and the new Rus
sian or German parties. In Berlin they
were well informed about this, and Bis
marck, together with his master, in
dulged in dire torcbodings as to What
xt,,N Il l,n,, 4
close his eyes The war of 1901 came
and the flames burst out afresh with re-
ncwed vigOr. The Czar and his immcdi.
ate entoTage were III fu ympathy with
Germany at that time, ana especial pains
were taken to emphasize this state of
feeling. The younger Alexander on the
other hand, had well-organizcd follow
ing Of his own, whose sympathics were
strongly iii another groove. The in
eyitaDlc result was that these sympathies
and antipathics frequently clashcd and
that snubs and the "cut direct" were
dealt out very literally and evenly dis
tributed during the whole duration of
the Franco German conflict and for some
time after to the representatives of Ger
many as well as France. Personal en-
counters even and duels ensued and
Alexander III. had rather busy time of
it trying to allay the outraged feelings
of this ambassador and of the attacho or
secretary.
Occasionally, however, he, too, felt
provoked, and on one notable occasion
the Emperor was put into perfect rage
by his sons Prussophobous pranks. 1t
was on the occasion of n court ball. This
happened to be given the night when
the tele9raphic news of another disaster
to French arms had just reached St.
Petersburg. The Emperor chad been
speaking of this to several OF his init.
mates early in the evening and in terms
of admiration at the wonderful achieve
ments of German valor. Soon after he
had entered the grand ballroom in the
winter palace, Prince Alexander came III
likowise, almost Immediately followed
by his circle of friends. The prince, as
well as those behind him, had pinned
email favors to the lapcls of their sws
low-tails, these being diminutive repre-
sentations OF the French tri-color. The